This month marks the anniversary of the launch of UCSC Extension's “Internet Programming and Development” certificate. This new program focuses on the latest software technologies powering the Internet. During its first year, this program received high marks from students, both for the relevance of its content and the quality of instruction.

The program features overview courses covering the traditional systems programming frameworks such as Java, C#, and .NET, which are supported by the major software companies. Courses are also available on the so-called “Web 2.0 programming languages” such as JavaScript, PHP, Python, Ruby, and Ruby on Rails. We commonly offer two levels of courses for each language to suit students with varying backgrounds. We cover all the major platforms and languages that employers typically seek in job listings. Nearly all of these skills have seen increased demand in recent years. Determining the right system for a particular application can be challenging, as each language involves trade-offs in terms of features, speed, memory, and productivity. In most cases, employers are also seeking more than one area of expertise. For those reasons, we encourage you to acquire as broad a skill-base as possible.

We continue to enhance our program every quarter. For the upcoming spring quarter, we have added several new courses and revised numerous others. Please check out PHP, Ruby on Rails, MySQL, and Windows Presentation Foundation. This coming Summer, we will add courses on JQuery and Windows Driver Foundation. Come study with us and you'll find instruction geared towards immediate application in Silicon Valley industries.

UCSC Extension in Silicon Valley invites senior professionals in the Bay Area to apply to design and teach courses in their area of professional expertise. This is an opportunity for you to give back to your community by sharing your knowledge and mentoring your discipline’s next generation.

We are interested in proposals for new courses on topics that draw from your particular area of expertise. Proposals should concentrate on highly practical learning that professionals can apply on the job after they leave our classrooms.

Students who attend our courses are seeking professional education from seasoned expert-practitioners. We favor instructors with advanced degrees and years of experience in the topics they teach. Of course, we prefer applicants with prior instructional experience in a university, corporate or training setting.

See our Prospective Instructor Guide and send your course idea to EngTech@ucsc-extension.edu .